Location: Les Saintes
The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, delirious of everything at the same time, the ones that never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle, you see the blue center light pop. Everybody goes “Awww”(Kerouac). If the people around you are not exploding like “Roman candles,” then either change your surroundings or change yourself. Every day, we step foot on shore, and people have different priorities and interests, whether it be talking to a girlfriend on the internet, getting gelato, finding the nearest beach, or exploring as much as possible. After the staff made an early morning move of Argo around a small peninsula about a mile to the nearest town, we began in good spirits with fresh pastries from shore brought on dinghies by the early risers. While waiting to clear into The Saints, we had time to show Argo some love, rust busting, waxing, and giving her a much-needed soapy wash after all the diving equipment dirtied her up. We got the go-ahead and made our way to shore with ice cream, internet, and cliff jumping on our minds. With fixes satisfied, groups split, some meandering uphill toward the old fort while others walked to the opposite side of the island to find the beach. Iguanas were scattered in every grassy spot, and mopeds buzzed erratically while we walked east toward the beach. The beach we found was the classic Caribbean desktop screensaver. Palm trees lined the water, a small island off the shore, and gentle waves broke on the golden sand. Plus goats. I almost forgot the goats. Some of us laid out and slept. Others swam to the island and had hermit crab battles with upwards of fifty crabs in the sand “arena.” Deathmatch. Not really though, I lie, I lie. They were all returned safely to their shady dens. Three o’clock rolled in, and the dinghies brought us home to Argo. After completing passage prep, we motored off the anchor and headed for Saba. Chefs took on the task of pizza tonight, committing themselves to 4+ hours of dinner prep, which was very much appreciated. Goodnight everyone. “Go so far away that you stop being afraid of not coming back.” Eve Ensler.